National Geographic - Locked Up Abroad

A View From Behind Bars  with Dick Atkins

Attorney Dick Atkins, the so-called “Houdini of Fast Escapes from Foreign Prisons,” has spent more than 28 years helping Americans get out of legal trouble abroad — helping to win freedom for over a thousand Americans held in foreign custody.
His services are sought by congressmen seeking help for detained constituents, travel insurance companies looking into high-stakes claims, people who call his hotline, which offers around-the-clock legal advice, and human rights organizations like Amnesty International who refer those seeking help for friends or loved ones in trouble abroad. Some of his clients are travelers to developing countries who have found themselves in jail after breaking laws they didn't know existed.
Through his experience, Mr. Atkins has become proficient in describing the world's most notorious and unexpected tourist traps, the worst prisons on Earth and how to avoid getting sent to them. Below is his advice should one become Locked up Abroad.  

SAUDI ARABIA
The view from behind bars:

• Bail is almost always denied.
• Use of torture is allegedly widespread.
• Access to legal counsel during interrogation and trial is not guaranteed.
• Penal code includes beheading and public flogging.

What will get you locked down:

• Using or possessing alcohol (zero tolerance).
• Breaking morality laws — including dress and head-covering codes for women — which are enforced by religious police.
• Possessing pornography.
• Engaging in homosexual acts.

Atkins’ advice:

• Remember that a confession may be the most practical way to prevent interrogation from escalating to actual torture — and give you time to seek legal representation.

INDIA
The view from behind bars:

• Inadequate food and medical care.
• Lengthy detention times before trial (without bail) are common.
• No prisoner transfer agreement exists between India and the United States.
• Americans can be targeted for extortion by the corrupt, underpaid police.

What will get you locked down:

• Disputes over business contracts can be settled by the criminal justice system.

Atkins’ advice:

• Discreet payments, or baksheesh, could get you out of trouble or get you better treatment.

MEXICO
The view from behind bars:

• The police have been accused of torturing U.S. citizens to extract confessions.
• Meals and medical care are often inadequate; in some cases, you may have to pay out of pocket for all your prison expenses.
• Conditions can be violent; an American was allegedly beaten to death in jail by inmates and a prison guard in 2000.
• Detention while waiting for a trial can last for weeks or longer.
• Inmates are sometimes targeted for extortion by underpaid prison guards and officials.

What will get you locked down:

• Possession of firearms and/or ammunition almost always results in jail time.
• Drivers involved in accidents in which someone is seriously hurt are automatically jailed — sometimes for months — pending determination of fault and payment of restitution.

Atkins’ advice:

• If you are jailed, make sure that your lawyer knows about the Prisoner Transfer Treaty and that everything possible is being done to get you transferred to an American prison.

PERU
The view from behind bars:

• Harsh prison conditions made worse by inmate violence or extreme altitude.
• Slow judicial processes mean long pretrial detention times.

What will get you locked down:

• Extremely harsh drug laws.

Atkins’ advice:

• Coca leaf preparations are traditionally used to counter the effects of altitude sickness by locals and tourists alike; avoid all other forms of coca.

THAILAND
The view from behind bars:

• Despite generally good treatment by prison officials, prisons are overcrowded, extremely humid and uncomfortable.
• Slow judicial processes can result in long pretrial detention times.

What will get you locked down:

• Drug-related offenses can be punished with a lifetime prison sentence or the death penalty.

• Many (mostly women) are duped into becoming drug mules when they agree to transport a package or suitcase out of the country in exchange for money or a free vacation.

Atkins’ advice:

• Despite the availability of cheap drugs, remember the consequences.

CHINA
The view from behind bars:

• Isolation:  It is extremely difficult to contact people who are in Chinese jails.  No prisoner transfer treaty exists between the United States and China.
• There is no independent monitoring of Chinese prison conditions.

What will get you locked down:

• The criminal justice system is used to enforce business contracts in a dispute.
• There are currently around 30 Americans jailed for business-related offenses in China.  (Many claim that they are in jail for refusing to pay bribes).

 Atkins’ advice:

• If you’re arrested in China?  Pray.

---

03/09 Reprinted from National Geographic Adventure Magazine / Source: www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/0312/exclusive.html

With Permissions

WE THE PEOPLE

Parents of kids who have been abused, raped and killed on student programs abroad want protections from the White House, not massive 100,000 Strong all calls 'Head'em UP! Move'em OUT!'

• 100,000 Passport to India
• 100,000 Passport to Latin America
• 100,000 Passport to China
• And more...

Our kids can become trapped in over-promised, under-qualified and under-performed student programs. They are raped and killed on student programs and no one is doing anything about it.  The programs investigate themselves!
Do the math, if one percent (1%) of these students die; ten percent (10%)?  One death is one too many.  We need 100,000 STRONG signatures to get President Barack Obama's attention.  Please sign now! Click on the title:

 WE PETITION THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION TO:

Stop Soliciting Our Kids With 100,000 Strong Until We Have Oversight, Protections, Policy, Sanctions & Transparency!

Millions of American students are being encouraged to study abroad on President Obama's 100,000 strong initiatives and other middle, high school and college level programs.
No laws protect them!
There is no federal oversight, no qualifications, no standards, no sanctions against poor performers, or transparent reporting on a program's safety record!
Programs, including universities who receive our tax dollars, refuse to speak to parents whose child is hurt or killed overseas. Parents are forced to sue to get information.
Programs investigate themselves. We have NO recourse when our kids are raped, abused, scammed or killed.
WE NEED LAWS NOW to protect our kids!

FAILURE TO WARN

About 270,000 American college students studied abroad last year.  A lawsuit that settled in 2011 makes a compelling case about a program's failure to warn. 
Stephanie Slattery enrolled in a Antioch Education Abroad (AEA) for Mali, while attending  Eastern Michigan University. She was subsequently raped for not understanding 'cultural differences' and expatriated to Paris for medical attention. An article in On Point, Woman Blames Study Abroad Program for Rape in Mali, has a compelling argument that programs have a duty to protect students from “foreseeable, reasonable dangers.”
AEA's “negligent failure to warn of cultural difference directly and proximately caused physical harm ... and severe, permanent emotional damage, pain and suffering to Plaintiff,” the article quotes the lawsuit.
A more recent story by Elizabeth Redden, Inside Higher Ed, Sexual Assault and Study Abroad, December 2012, discusses a more recent study published by Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy with mind-boggling statistics.  Ms. Redden reports, "Sixty of the respondents (27.5 percent) reported at least one experience of unwanted touching while abroad, 13 (6 percent) reported an attempted sexual assault (anal, oral or vaginal), and 10 (4.6 percent) reported rape."
Matthew Kimble, an associate professor of psychology at Middlebury College and co-author, William F. Flack Jr., of Bucknell University are citing parallels of rape of female college students on American campuses to study abroad.  It' a whole different world when American students are raped in a foreign country. “Despite the limitations, there is evidence to suggest that, in this sample, studying abroad in certain regions puts female students at risk for unwanted sexual experiences,” quotes Ms. Redden's article.  

Mr. Whalen, Forum on Education Abroad, frequently quotes an outdated 'voluntary' incident data report.  He goes further explaining its a well-established practice in study abroad to have response protocols in place and to conduct pre-departure and orientation sessions covering health and safety topics.
To date, the  majority of study abroad programs do not have qualified health and safety directors with rape crisis skill sets.  One has to wonder what defines 'well-established' practice and whose watch-dogging those practices.
Representative Pete Hoekstra (R-MI), "What concerns me is that there may be a sizable gap between the best and the worst run study abroad programs.  That gap is likely to increase if there is a headlong rush to expand student abroad activities by institutions that are not prepared to do so. I fear that they may be tempted to cut corners or to send students to potentially dangerous areas without taking the necessary precautions.”
Twelve years later, not much has changed in federal or state protections.  Rep. Pete Hoekstra's concerns may be even more pertinent today. Failure to warn? Should programs even be sending students to high risk, high rape crisis areas?
If you're a female college student, or parent of one, please become familiar with http://www.oneinfourusa.org/
Safety is NOT an Accident!

Study Applaud or Study Afraud?

Elizabeth Redden, reporter for Inside Higher Ed, published a compelling article titled "I AM 911".
University of New Hampshire's interim dean of the College of Health and Human Services, Neil B. Vroman, cancelled the June program because of emergency medical procedures that placed students and the institute in unacceptable risk.
Professor Pamela Broido's appointment was subsequently not renewed.  She is quoted as saying, "I am 911 down there."  In Nicaragua, the destination of the program, emergency services are 118.
Despite the University of New Hampshire's sanction, Ms. Broido intends to chaperone University of New Hampshire students to Nicaragua without University support.  That's like running over a stop sign.  Without that support, students and parents should get involved, do in depth research to find out about all aspects of the program's implementation, safety of housing, trips, emergency assistance and response, emergency communication, transportation safety, special issues related to the area such as volcanic fumes and scorpion bites, and a history of all past health and safety issues to determine whether to continue to participate.
In the article, Ms. Broido said her concerns were heightened when a student was bitten by a scorpion and in another instance five students were having respiratory distress and shared an inhaler.  (The article actually says bitten but scorpions sting not bite.)
Ms. Broido sought the advice of Amy Coombs, a nurse practitioner who prescribed an EpiPen, Vistaril, Cipro for diarrhea, and an albuterol inhaler.  Ms. Coombs is credited with stating, "The Good Samaritan Law provides legal protections to people who administer emergency first aid."  Once feet leave American soil American law has no jurisdiciton.  Nicaragua is a guilty until proven innocent country.  Faculty and students warrant health insurance, medical evacuation and potentially 'ransom insurance' to protect them.
One student, Stephanie Hill, still intends to go.  She went last year and called it the opportunity of a lifetime. She is quoted as saying "It breaks our hearts, because after this semester other students won’t get this experience."  Tyler Hill, ClearCause founders 16 year old son, died a preventable death on a People to People trip to Japan.  Mt.Fuji is also a volcano.  These programs can be life changing in many ways.  Tyler Hill, his family, and those of many other students who died abroad will never get a second chance.  University of New Hampshire students will, once protective measures are carefully thought out and implemented.
ClearCause adviser Dr. Gary Rhodes is also quoted, "I deal on a semi-regular basis with the parents of students who have died on study abroad programs. I think they would suggest that the university is doing the right thing on erring on the side of the safety of the students."
Yes.  We agree.  Study Applauds!

GRAMMY'S - Two ClearCause Philanthropic Donors Turned Away

Too good to be true!

In 2012, ClearCause Foundation consigned a luxury trip for two to the 2013 Grammy's from WinspireMe for its inaugural benefit, Around the World Safely.

Premier nonprofit auctioneer, Karen Sorbo, sold the experience to a ClearCause director willing to invest $8,000 on the experience for our cause - Safe Global Youth Travel.

The 'no-risk' tickets were made available by WinspireMe, a subsidiary of Winspire. WinspireMe has been around for awhile, offering many risk-free auction items like golf excursions, sporting events, wine tours and  tickets to the Grammy's. According to Jeff Weber, Executive Vice President at WinspireMe, they have helped thousands of nonprofits raise more than $17,000,000.

So when CCF Executive Director, Sheryl Hill, spoke with a WinspireMe agent in California she was informed that if the tickets did not sell, ClearCause would not incur costs.  She agreed to offer Grammy tickets on consignment at $6,000.  ClearCause received a $2,000 donation, the donor received an opportunity of a lifetime.  Everyone was  happy.

Until the Grammy's . . .

ClearCause generous bid winners showed up dressed to the hilt for the experience of a lifetime, their tickets in hand.  They were pulled aside among the elite and told they could not get in.  All the anticipation, excitement and preparation halted in preventable embarrassment. A little less than half of WinspireMe's Grammy 'winners' did not get what they paid for.

To WinspireMe's credit they were quick to respond with sincere apologies, "We are so sorry." "We are sick to our stomachs about this."  "This has never happened to us before."  "We'll make this right."  They have agreed to refund money and offered the consolation of a spa day to ClearCause bid winners.

Apparently, an attorney who serves on the Grammy's board supplied the tickets to WinspireMe. The Grammy's obviously knew that they weren't going to let 'some' WinspireMe ticket holders in.  The Grammy's could have alerted WinspireMe to that fact to avoid embarrassment of philanthropic ticket holders at the door.  They didn't.

ClearCause was asked if they would use WinspireMe again in the future.  We will.  The greatest test of an organizations character is how they respond when things go bad.  WinspireMe - thus far, has taken the fiasco and offered remunerations to nonprofit supporters.  We don't have a pulse on what WinspireMe will offer nonprofits whose donors did not get what they paid for.

WinspireMe was wounded by Grammy Award deliberate actions.  Generous donors will be more hesitant to bid on auction items like these. Sadly, this hurts nonprofits.

Maury Glover, reporter with FOX 9 News, was Master of Ceremonies for ClearCause Foundation's inaugural event in 2012.  Chagrined that the Grammy's would turn away generous philanthropic people, he reported the story on February 11, Minnesota Philanthropists Turned Away at Grammy Awards.

5163-2 2013 GRAMMYS Music awards BRONZE+PARTY 3nt coach 03-23-12

GIVE TO THE MAX - NOVEMBER 15

Please Remember our ClearCause When You Give to the Max on November 15!

Give MN November 15, 2012! Thank you for supporting ClearCause

Your generous support means the world to America’s Youth and Students on programs abroad!

Join us on November 15, Minnesota’s Give to the Max Day, and help us win a $1,000 Golden Ticket. GiveMN—an online giving website for Minnesota nonprofits— offers ClearCause 25 chances to maximize your gift on Give to the Max Day, Thursday, November 15!  To donate, please visit:   http://givemn.razoo.com/story/Clearcause?referral_code=share" HsTracking="Razoo

By making a donation on Give to the Max Day, your $10 or more gift helps us win an extra $1,000 to keep America’s youth and students safe abroad.  Your donation advances:

AWARENESS - A2f Pictures awarded ClearCause three riveting Public Service Announcements (PSAs). $10,000 is needed to promote these on cable television and other media.

ADVOCACY - ClearCause has the support of US Senators Franken (MN-D) and Klobuchar (MN-D), US Congressman Paulsen (MN-R), MN Governor Dayton and MN Secretary of State Mark Ritchie.

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS PLANNING - Parents and emergency contacts often do not have passports, funding, permissions, legal counsel or a plan when their student's trip goes bad.

FAMILY CRISIS FUND - Help us support families whose children are abused, hurt or killed abroad.

Together, we hope to raise more than $10,000 on Give to the Max Day.  We’re counting on your help!

Four Mothers Will Never Spend the Holidays with Their Child Again

Executive director Sheryl Hill was recently quoted in a USA Today article, "Death Highlights Risks of Study Abroad Programs."

Casey Schulman (VA), Morgan Lide (GA), Joshua Shane (AZ) and Ravi Thackurdeen (NY) will not be 'home' for the holidays ever again.  All four died in water accidents.

Comments like, "Most of them come back safe" aren't helping.  Most is not good enough for ClearCause.  There are no federal laws, oversight, minimum qualifications or standards, nor mandated transparent reporting in the youth travel and study abroad industry.  Some of these students are sponsored by US Department of State study abroad grants using your tax dollars.

Parents seeking information about the tragic death of their children are often met with silence as Universities are warned by their attorneys to avoid lawsuits.  Sadly, many parents are left no alternatives but to file lawsuits to get information about their child's death.

Tragically, history repeats itself.  Students and other Americans have drowned on the same unmarked beaches.  American's be warned - a stroll along a hazardous beach where the sand can wash out from underneath you, and the undertow drag you out into treacherous waters - particularly during monsoon season in remote areas, can cost you your life.

Water safety is getting the attention of study abroad programs. Perhaps the lives of these aspiring young students will herald warnings to save others.  More needs to be done.

Our hearts go out to their family, friends and community. Safety means the world to youth and students abroad.